The Etymologicon [electronic resource] : A Circular Stroll Through the Hidden Connections of the English Language

"I'm hooked on Forsyth's book ... Crikey, but this is addictive"--Mathew Parris, The Times. Sunday Times Bestseller and Book of the Week on Radio Four. The Etymologicon springs from Mark Forsyth's Inky Fool blog on the strange connections between words. It's an occasionally ribald, frequently witty and unerringly erudite guided tour of the secret labyrinth that lurks beneath the English language, taking in monks and monkeys, film buffs and buffaloes, and explaining precisely what the Rolling Stones have to do with gardening.;Title page; Copyright; Contents; About the author; Dedication; Quotation; Author's note; Preface; The Etymologicon; A Turn-up for the Books; A Game of Chicken; Hydrogentlemanly; The Old and New Testicle; Parenthetical Codpieces; Suffering for my Underwear; Pans; Miltonic Meanders; Bloody Typical Semantic Shifts; The Proof of the Pudding; Sausage Poison in Your Face; Bows and Arrows and Cats; Black and White; Hat Cheque Point Charlie; Sex and Bread; Concealed Farts; Wool; Turkey; Insulting Foods; Folk Etymology; Butterflies of the World; Psychoanalysis and the Release of the Butterfly. The Sunday Times Number One Bestseller. 'witty And Erudite ... Stuffed With The Kind Of Arcane Information That Nobody Strictly Needs To Know, But Which Is A Pleasure To Learn Nonetheless.' Nick Duerden, Independent. 'particularly Good ... Forsyth Takes Words And Draws Us Into Their, And Our, Murky History.' William Leith, Evening Standard. The Etymologicon Is An Occasionally Ribald, Frequently Witty And Unerringly Erudite Guided Tour Of The Secret Labyrinth That Lurks Beneath The English Language. What Is The Actual Connection Between Disgruntled And Gruntled? What Links Church Organs To Organised Crime, California To The Caliphate, Or Brackets To Codpieces? Mark Forsyth's Riotous Celebration Of The Idiosyncratic And Sometimes Absurd Connections Between Words Is A Classic Of Its Kind: A Mine Of Fascinating Information And A Must-read For Word-lovers Everywhere. 'highly Recommended' Spectator. Springing from writer and journalist Mark Forsyth's hugely popular blog The Inky Fool and including word-connection parlour games perfect for any word-lovers get-together, The Etymologicon is a brilliant map of the secret labyrinth that lurks beneath the English language. There's always a connection. Sometimes, it's obvious: an actor's role was once written on a roll of parchment, and cappuccinos are the same colour as the robes of a Capuchin monk. Sometimes the connection is astonishing and a little more hidden: who would have guessed that your pants and panties are named after Saint Pantaleon, the all-compassionate? What is the actual connection between disgruntled and gruntled? What links church organs to organised crime, California to the Caliphate, or brackets to codpieces? The Etymologicon springs from Mark Forsyth's Inky Fool blog on the strange connections between words. It's an occasionally ribald, frequently witty and unerringly erudite guided tour of the secret labyrinth that lurks beneath the English language, taking in monks and monkeys, film buffs and buffaloes, and explaining precisely what the Rolling Stones have to do with gardening. The massive Christmas 2011 bestseller and Radio 4 Book of the Week Unauthorized guide to the underpinnings of the English language.